Fringe Rewatch: 2.18 The Human Dimension

Welcome to the rewatch for episode 18 of Fringe season 2 – “The Man From The Other Side”. Join us as we search for remaining perspectives before breaking the good news to Peter.

We have renamed this episode: The Human Dimension.

Newly Observed Perspectives

I’ve always been intrigued by the shapeshifters and their contributions to the show’s exploration of identity. I am curious to know more about them. For instance, when the shapeshifters take on an identity, what else do they assume? The soul? Humanity? Do they bring anything else to the identities they acquire?

“At least she died in a happy place”. Really Peter? The girl was just murdered, have some consideration.

The two universes being out of sync seems to account for Olivia’s time-slips when she met with William Bell.

Poor Elizabeth. What a terrible place she must have been in to commit suicide. I guess her guilt got the better of her in a way that it didn’t with Walter, who, as we know, liberated himself of many of those haunting memories during his incarceration.

Interesting that when Peter comes round after getting knocked unconscious on the bridge, we see through his eyes as he flickers awake in machine-like fashion. I wonder if that little nuance was intentional, considering the upcoming Doomsday machine storyline? Either way, he’s definitely viewing the world through a different perspective from this point.

I’ve always been intrigued by the handshake between Walternate and The Newt. I call it the hand of humanity, because I wonder what such a gesture meant to Newton on a personal level? He seemed to understand its power, its acceptance. Perhaps such an offering would mean more to him than it would to a ‘normal’ human? I really hope we get to explore these shapeshifters more in season 3.

Best retrospective performer: Joshua Jackson.

Best retrospective moment: Peter realizing that he’s from the other side / confronting Walter

Comments

This one had everything, action, a good plot, shapeshifters and excellent acting by everybody.

Peter’s hospital scene with Olivia and Walter is my favorite. The three leads have been consistently great in S2 and John Noble and Joshua Jackson were pure perfection here.

Olivia’s blank face, when she told Walter that Peter had left, was on point. I think it was a clever acting choice and very Olivia. Any display of emotion here would have been out of character, but the best thing is that it wasn’t blank as in dumb, quite the opposite. You can see your own emotions reflected in her. Whatever you want to see, it’s there. I find this amazing.

“Interesting that when Peter comes round after getting knocked unconscious on the bridge, we see through his eyes as he flickers awake in machine-like fashion.”

I noticed that too when i watched this episode. Maybe Peter is like D.A.R.Y.L. or Rachael in Blade Runner lol . Maybe not but i’m still thinking he’s not Walter biological son, i mean perhaps some kind of experiment like in “The Same Old Story”.

… making him a precursor of Newton? Or a leader above Newt? Everything is possible, but i don’t think that the series will go that way.
Remember Peternate tinkering with the AU device, that reacted on his human hand? Human, so he is human. But also some sort of catalyst or human fuse for the Doomsday Device.

“Does anyone remember what episode it was where Peter accuses Walter of shocking him with car batteries? I wonder what significance that had…? What exactly was Walter trying to do?”

Yes i remember it was in “In Which We Meet Mr. Jones” when they try to read the memory of a dead man, here i found the transcripts :

WALTER: Yes. Well, the – the trouble was, he had a shockingly low electro-sensitivity. When I turned on the machine, it instantly fried is brain like an egg. Everyone has the unique tolerance to electrical stimulation. Mine for instance, is remarkably high. Yours Peter — unusually low. As for our friend here, we don’t know. Too little current and won’t work. Too much, and we will overcook his brain – so I will have..

PETER: You ~ used to do this to me. You attached wires to car batteries and then you would shock me.

UGHHHHHHHH that dying shapeshifter embryo. For me, that was one of the most disturbing things I’ve ever seen on this show.

I’m really interested in learning more about Walter and Elizabeth; what went on while Peter grew up. Like Roco said, what a terrible place she must have been in to take her own life. I also agree with what is being said about Peter…human, but altered somehow, someway. Walternate evidently did somerthing to Peter that our Walter didn’t to HIS son.

“UGHHHHHHHH that dying shapeshifter embryo. For me, that was one of the most disturbing things I’ve ever seen on this show.”
Totally agree ! “disturbing” that’s the word.”

I remarked to my husband that for me, the whole shoving metal prongs into the roof of your or someone else’s mouth is somehow more of a gross-out than many of the very gross things on this show. It’s like nails on a blackboard, those “holes in the soft palate”

Just putting it out there…..I LOVE PETER BISHOP. The end of this episode made me cry. I love the relationship that is at the very core of Fringe….the relationship between Walter and Peter (his real son). You can tell that Josh and John get on very well…….they put so much effort into developing their characters and their familial relationship. They are both AWESOME actors!